Precipitation sensors having an impact surface and a converter for the registration of oscillations produced when precipitation particles strike the impact surface are in principle known and described, for example, in DE 103 30 129 A1, EP 0 422 553 A1, FR. 2 595 473, WO 03/027720 A1 or WO 2013/147605 A2. In such precipitation sensors, a precipitation particle striking the impact surface deflects the impact surface and typically sets the latter oscillating. A deflection of the impact surface can be detected by means of an appropriate converter, which supplies a corresponding converter output signal. By means of evaluating the converter output signal, it is possible to determine whether a precipitation particle has struck the impact surface. This can be done, for example, by using an analysis of the amplitude of the converter output signal.
In such precipitation sensors, there is regularly the desire to differentiate different types of precipitation, for example rain, snow or hail, from one another. In particular, there is the desire to detect precipitation in the form of hail and to distinguish the same reliably from all other types of precipitation, for example in the form of rain. However, this is not simple.